free public centre for Internet access has been opened in Tashkent. US ambassador to Uzbekistan John Herbst and the Open Society Institute of Uzbekistan director participated in the opening ceremony.

At the ceremony, Herbst said the open Internet access centre was made possible by US State Department and Open Society Institute assistance handled by the US International Research and Exchange council (IREX).

IREX is currently preparing to open 16 such centres in Central Asia, including in Nukus and Samarkand in Uzbekistan. A similar centre will soon be opened in the densely-populated Fergana valley. Around 4,000 people have already completed an Internet literacy course.

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delegation led by Stephen Sestanovich, the ambassador-at-large and coordinator of the US policy in relations with newly independent states, started its visit to Uzbekistan on December 6.

Uzbek Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Komilov received the honoured guest today. During the meeting they discussed issues of regional security, the development of trade, economic and political relations and the situation in Afghanistan.

In April this year, during her visit to Uzbekistan, the US secretary of state, Madeleine Albright, promised to allocate 3m dollars for strengthening borders of the countries of the region, because, the fight against international terrorism is a key issue today.

Many terrorist groups have found shelter in Afghanistan because of the continuation of a fratricidal war in Afghanistan and the absence of a central government in the country. In addition, drugs are being smuggled from Afghanistan via the Central Asian countries, Pakistan and Iran to the world market. According to the UN, 75 per cent of all heroin in the world is produced in Afghanistan. Thus, the issue of strengthening frontiers is very important for Uzbekistan.

Therefore, the discussion of regional security is the main purpose of Stephen Sestanovich's visit to Uzbekistan.

The members of the delegation led by Stephen Sestanovich will visit the Uzbek Defence and the Macroeconomics and Statistics Ministries.

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n Uzbek government delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister Rustam Yunusov has been to Bishkek on a short-term visit.

The Kyrgyz deputy prime minister and foreign trade and industry minister, Esengul Omuraliyev, told a news conference at the Kabar news agency that an agreement on joint use of water and power engineering facilities in 2001 had been signed between Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan during the visit. According to him, the agreement was reached a month ago during a Kyrgyz government delegation's visit to Tashkent, but, by signing the document the sides raised the status of the document.

Under the agreement, Kyrgyzstan will receive 700m cubic metres of natural gas from Uzbekistan, which is enough to meet the demands of Bishkek and Osh [southern town]. In addition, 525m cubic metres of gas will be supplied [by Uzbekistan] at 42 dollars for 1,000 cu.m. for the public service sector.

According to the agreement, 50 per cent of the cost of the supplied natural gas will be paid in hard currency and the remaining 50 per cent will be paid in Kyrgyz-made goods - cement, asbestos cement, pipes, roofing slates, equipment and foodstuffs.

In addition, Uzbekistan will supply 80,000 tonnes of fuel oil to Kyrgyzstan, which will fully meet the demands of heating plants and public service facilities, and also 120 tonnes of various petroleum products.

Kyrgyzstan, in its turn, pledged to supply 2.2bn kWh of electricity to Uzbekistan at 3.3 cents [for 1,000 kWh] in 2001.

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tephen Sestanovich, U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for the Newly Independent States at the U.S. Department of State, has arrived in Tashkent Wednesday evening for official consultations. Ambassador Sestanovich is accompanied by Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Central Command Lt.-Gen. Michael P. Delong and a delegation of high level U.S. government officials from the Department of State and the U.S. Central Command.

During his visit to Uzbekistan, Ambassador Sestanovich has already met with Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdulaziz Kamilov is expected to meet with President Karimov and other senior members of the government of Uzbekistan. The purpose of the delegation's visit to Uzbekistan is to conduct consultations and discussions on a wide range of issues of mutual interest to the two countries.

On Tuesday, Sestanovich held talks in neighboring Kazakhstan with Kazakh Security Council Secretary Marat Tazhin. In Kazakhstan, Sestanovich discussed joint cooperation in fighting against terrorism and extremism in the Central Asian region. At a news conference, Sestanovich rejected suggestions made by the mass media that the United States was seeking to use air bases in Central Asia to launch strikes against bases of terrorism suspect Osama bin Laden.

Sestanovich said that the level of cooperation between the United States and Central Asian countries in the fight against terrorism gave no grounds for such reports. Bin Laden is considered responsible for Islamist attacks on U.S. targets, including the bombing of two U.S. embassies in east Africa in 1998.

Stephen Sestanovich was sworn in as Ambassador at Large and Special Adviser to the Secretary of State for the New Independent States (NIS) on September 19, 1997 and was confirmed by the Senate on September 16, 1997.

As principal adviser to the Secretary for the New Independent States, Ambassador Sestanovich is responsible for the overall coordination of U.S. relations with and assistance to the NIS of the former Soviet Union, coordination of policy of the NIS both within the Department and with other government entities, and serves as the principal spokesman for the Administration and the Department of State before Congress and the public on policy toward the NIS.

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he agenda of the forthcoming session of Oliy Majlis (the parliament of Uzbekistan) includes a major issue for discussion – State Budget for 2001.

The Committee of Oliy Majlis on budget, banking and finance issues has released the draft budget.

In the overall context it is planned to continue institutional changes owing to privatisation of state property and enhancement of the activities of privatised enterprises.

Inflation rate is predicted as 1.2% in average monthly rates and 16% of December 1999 figure (less than expected figures for 2000). The country can look forward to 104.5% growth of GDP over the year 2000. The growth of GDP will be backed by the growth of industrial output to 5.8%, agricultural production to 5.5%, contractual works to 3.6% and retail trade to 7.4%. Agricultural gross product is expected to grow by 5.5%.

The investment programme for the year 2001 provisions that capital investments will make up 26.1% of GDP, with 55% of capital flowing to industrial sectors.

The reforms in the social sphere will be implemented under the Programme for development and financing of the material and technical basis of academic lyceums and professional colleges, and the Programme of development of social infrastructure of rural areas, water supply and gasification.

Retail trade in 2001 is expected to grow 7.4% over 2000, mostly due to supply of domestic products.

What will be the priorities of the State budget in respect of revenues?

It is planned to relieve tax pressure, improve taxation of individuals profits and rationally structure the share of indirect and resource taxes in the budgetary structure. In accordance with the chosen priorities it is proposed to implement the following changes:

-to cut down profits tax rates from 31.0% to 26.0% ( while in 2000 it was reduced from 33.0% to only 31.0%); that will release 22 bln soums to be directed towards production area thus enabling enterprises to increase investments in fixed capital and production turnover. All prior privileges are to be retained.

-taxation of individuals engaged in entrepreneurial activity will be further developed towards a more simplified and convenient form. This form of tax should bring into the budget 27 bln soums making up 2.3% of the total budget receipts

-it is proposed to continue to increase the share of indirect taxes in the budget revenues from 16.9% in the current year to 17.1% of the GDP in 2001. VAT rates and excise tax rates will be retained at the present level. The list of excised goods will not change.

-in addition to existing privileges in respect of import of up-to-date technologies it is planned to relieve of tax duty enterprises importing technological equipment , while presently the import of technological equipment is exempt only from VAT;

-it is planned to implement unification of customs duties and replace the existing rates of 3, 5,10, 15, 30% by rates of 5, 20,30%.

Budget expenditures is another important issue. How will the Uzbek taxpayers money be spent?

The expenditures are predicted as 31.6% of the GDP. Priorities have been determined: providing social security for population, financing of the National programme on specialists training, State programme of healthcare system reform, increasing investment activities, reduction of financing of governing bodies and enhancing their efficiency (it is planned to reduce the number of managerial staff up to 20%), increasing the role of public self-governing bodies, allocation of funds for the country’s security and inviolability of state borders.

Expenditures for social sphere will make up 48.3% of the total budget including 8.5% for social security but excluding expenditures on construction of academic lyceums and secondary vocational colleges. In general, expenditures on education within the National programme on specialists training and healthcare system will significantly increase the figures of 2000.

It is assessed that the expenditures on centralized investments will make 216.2bln soums. These funds will be invested first of all in the construction of lyceums and colleges, supplying rural areas with drinking water and natural gas, construction of village medical units and other objects of social construction, and in development of mining industry, telecommunications, transport infrastructure and implementation of other priority projects.

For the first time beginning from 2001 the State budget provisions for expenditures on financing citizens self-governing bodies.

And finally the deficit – it is foreseen as 1.5% of GDP volume.It is proposed to cover the deficit by revenues from privatisation of state property and other non-inflationary sources making 1% of GDP, and through Central Bank credits of 0.5% of GDP. To compare with current and previous years, the Central bank credits issued to finance budget deficit were only 1,0% of the GDP.

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бюллетене "Перспективы обеспечения продовольствием" Международная организация по вопросам продовольствия и сельского хозяйства Организации Объединенных Наций отмечает, что в период с октября 1999 года по октябрь 2000 года число людей, нуждающихся в срочной помощи, выросло с 52 до 62 млн человек.

Вот полный список этих стран: Ангола, Армения, Бангладеш, Белиз, Берег Слоновой Кости, Буркина-Фасо, Бурунди, Вьетнам, Гаити, Гвинея, Гондурас, Грузия, Индия, Камбоджа, Кения, Конго, Корея (Северная), Лаос, Либерия, Мадагаскар, Мозамбик, Монголия, Никарагуа, Нигер, Россия, Руанда, Сьерра-Леоне, Сомали, Судан, Таджикистан, Таиланд, Танзания, Уганда, Узбекистан, Чад, Эритрея, Эфиопия, Югославия.

В африканских странах более 20 млн человек голодают, и ситуация кардинально не изменится и в 2001 году. Более 10 млн жителей Эфиопии нуждаются в срочной продовольственной помощи, 3,3 млн человек находятся в таком же положении в Кении, 2,4 млн - в Судане, более 1,5 млн. - в Эритрее.

Четыре азиатских страны пострадали от катастрофических наводнений. Это Вьетнам, Камбоджа, Лаос и Таиланд. В Латинской Америке Белиз, Гондурас и Никарагуа пострадали от ураганов и других природных катастроф. В четырех бывших республиках СССР (Армения, Грузия, Таджикистан и Узбекистан) наблюдается нехватка продовольствия. Такое же положение сложилось в некоторых районах бывшей Югославии, а также России.

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n Saturday Counterpart Humanitarian Assistance Program (CHAP) will deliver 240 wheelchairs to the Uzbekistan Ministry of Social Welfare. The wheelchairs are intended for disabled adults and children in Bukhara Oblast.

These 120 adult and 120 children wheelchairs are valued at more than $54,000. The wheelchairs are donated by "Wheelchairs for the World," a private non-profit foundation dedicated to helping disabled people throughout the world achieve mobility and realize their human potential.

This project is part of the United States Government's ongoing initiative to provide assistance and support to vulnerable groups throughout the Republic of Uzbekistan. The Ministry of Social Welfare is the Uzbek partner in this project.

Counterpart Humanitarian Assistance Program (CHAP), a U.S. Government funded organization, has been operating in Uzbekistan since 1998. To date, CHAP has provided almost 14 million US dollars in humanitarian supplies.

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